Inter-annual variability of acute lower respiratory infections among children in rural Benin: associations with weather conditions

The study aims to explore the potential associations between the monthly Acute Lower Respiratory Infections (ALRI) rates among children 0-5 years in four health zones located in Benin (West Africa) and the monthly values of several weather variables by using Pearson correlation coefficients. Only February has similar results in all studied health zone. Particularly dry and cold conditions are associated with increases in ALRI cases. During the other months, significant relations vary across regions but generally coincide with the results relayed in the literature. This research contributes to a better understanding of the temporal and spatial variability of ALRI among children 0-5 years in rural areas of Benin and may help to predict future occurrences of ALRI for the planning of public health activities.